2,000 volunteers join expanded search for missing Wisconsin teen Jayme Closs
BARRON, Wis. (KMSP) - The search for missing Barron, Wisconsin 13-year-old Jayme Closs expanded Tuesday with as many as 2,000 volunteers joining law enforcement in looking for anything that will shed light her parents’ murders and her subsequent disappearance.
Volunteers are conducting a grid search of the area surrounding the Closs home on Highway 8 in Barron. They are searching nearby fields and woods, as well as any outdoor structures that are open.
The Barron County Sheriff’s Office organized the search. Investigators told the volunteers they are looking for anything that could be connected to the case.
Volunteers drove in from all over, many from the Twin Cities metro, giving up work, taking vacation time or scraping previously scheduled plans to join the search.
The sheriff’s office is continuing to ask anyone with information related to the case to call the tip line at 1-855-744-3879 or email jaymetips@co.barron.wi.us with any photos or videos of possible sightings.
TIMELINE OF INVESTIGATION
Jayme has been missing since Monday, Oct. 15, the day her parents were found shot to death inside their home.
Shortly after 12:30 a.m. on Oct. 15, neighbors heard two gunshots come from the Closs family home.
At 12:53 a.m., Barron County dispatchers received a 911 call from Denise Closs’ cell phone. No one spoke to dispatchers, but there was a lot of yelling in the background. The call then dropped.
Calls back to Denise’s cell phone went unanswered. The first officer arrived at the Closs home minutes later and discovered the bodies of Denise and James Closs. Both died of gunshot wounds. The front door to the home had been kicked in.
The sheriff’s office believes Jayme was home at the time of the shooting. By the time officers arrived, she was gone.
At 1:06 a.m., the call log reads that a male is down—at that time officers did not know Jayme was missing. She was officially listed as a missing child at 3:57 a.m., according to the log. An AMBER Alert for her was issued later that day.
Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald has said Jayme is not a suspect in her parents’ murders. She is believed to be in danger and has been added to the top of the FBI’s Missing Persons list. Her information is now be posted on billboards and gas pumps nationwide.
VEHICLES OF INTEREST
On Monday, Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald identified two vehicles of interest in the investigation.
Cameras captured surveillance video of two vehicles that were in the area around the time of the shooting at the Closs home in Barron, Wisconsin last week. Jayme Closs, 13, has been missing for a week. Her parents were found dead in their home.
One vehicle is believed to be a red or orange 2008 to 2014 Dodge Challenger. Investigators are uncertain of the make and model of the second vehicle. They believe the other vehicle could be a black 2006 to 2010 Ford Edge or a black 2004 to 2010 Acura MDX.
Again, the sheriff’s office is continuing to ask anyone with information related to the case to call the tip line at 1-855-744-3879 or email jaymetips@co.barron.wi.us with any photos or videos of possible sightings.